Business Enabler

Location(s): Central London

Salary: £40,428 rising to £43,705 after 1 year

Flexible working: we support full-time, part-time, compressed, flexible hours and job sharing, subject to business need. Full-time roles are based on 36 hours per week Monday to Friday, with flexibility around start and finish times. Part-time roles are based on a minimum of 3 days per week. Due to the nature of this role, home or remote working is not possible.

About us

MI5 keeps the country safe from serious threats like terrorism and attempts by states to harm the UK, its people and way of life. We carry out investigations by obtaining, analysing, and assessing intelligence, and then work with a range of partners including MI6 and GCHQ to disrupt these threats. Through our protective security arm, we provide advice and guidance to government, businesses and other organisations about how to keep themselves safe. A role in MI5 means you'll do unique and challenging work in a supportive and encouraging environment, making a real difference to UK national security.

The role

As a Business Enabler, you’ll enjoy varied work in a role that puts the emphasis on teamwork. It means we have really rewarding careers that rely on people with varied backgrounds, ages, and skills. Whether you’ve just graduated or want a career change, you’ll develop your skills, have a hugely positive impact and be at the heart of what we do. The support you give in one of our many mission enabling positions will help the wider intelligence business work smoothly, while giving you lots of interesting insights.

Our Business Enablers operate in a wide range of roles across almost all areas of the organisation. While each role is different, it will last a minimum of two years, allowing you the time to build your expertise and experience and make tangible contributions to your business area. Typical areas of the organisation you might be posted to include: Finance, Legal, Information Management, HR, Project Management, Compliance, Recruitment, Policy, Pensions, Training and Data Management.

Your first post will help you to gain a breadth of experience, build relationships and develop detailed knowledge in one specific area of our organisation. And after a minimum of two years, you’ll be able to apply for different roles in the organisation or continue where you are, depending on business needs and priorities at that time.

Whilst you’ll be employed by MI5, you might also have opportunities to work with MI6 and GCHQ.

Open to UK nationals only.

What to expect

Our recruitment process is fair, transparent, and based on merit. Here is a brief overview of each stage, in order:

• Eligibility questions: the first step is for you to complete our pre-screening questions to find out if you do meet our initial criteria. If you do meet these criteria, we then ask you to begin an application.
• Initial form: you will need to create a login and provide your full name, email address and memorable password. Once you have successfully created a personal account, you will be required to complete an initial application form providing contact details and equal opportunities information.
• Online Situational Judgement Test (SJT) in which you rate the appropriateness of responses to a series of short scenarios.
• Role specific Situational Judgement Test: during the situational judgement test you will be presented with a set of hypothetical scenarios which have been designed using situations relevant to our values and key behaviours needed to perform the Business Enabler role. The situational judgement test is set in the context of you taking on the role of a Business Enabler, however you will not need any knowledge of the policies or procedures relating to MI5 in order to answer the questions in this test. You will just need to use your own judgement to rate the effectiveness of each option in response to the situation presented and pick the most and least effective options. This situational judgement test will present you with different situations that you might have to deal with as a Business Enabler.
• Full application form: you will need to complete all required sections, including motivational questions.
• Online interview: your application will be sifted by our recruitment team and if successful, the next stage is an online interview. This will include competency-based questions and will explore your motivation to work for MI5.
• Online assessment centre: if you pass the online interview, you will be invited to attend an assessment online. This half day assessment will include a mixture of role-plays, an interview, and a written assessment. It is designed to assess the full range of competencies and skills required for the Business Enabler role and is often described by candidates as a challenging yet rewarding day.

Please note, you must successfully pass each stage of the process to progress to the next. Your application may take around 9 to 12 months to process including vetting, so we advise you to continue any current employment until you have received your final job offer.

Before you apply

To work at MI5, you need to be a British citizen or hold dual British nationality. Visit our website to read about our eligibility criteria.

This role requires the highest security clearance, known as Developed Vetting (DV). It’s something everyone in the UK Intelligence Community undertakes. You can find out more about the vetting process on our website.

Please note we have a strict drugs policy, so once you start your application, you can’t take any recreational drugs and you’ll need to declare your previous drug usage at the relevant stage.

Before you apply, we advise you to consider setting up a separate email address for your contact with us, to ensure your personal and application correspondence remain separate. Try to avoid having identifying features in your email address, such as your first and/or surname and date of birth. This is good practice and will help you to manage your application with us more securely.

The role is based in Central London, so you’ll need to live within a commutable distance. Please consider any financial implications and practicalities before submitting an application. A loan is available to support people relocating to London.

We offer reasonable reimbursement of travel costs for candidates attending in-person appointments during the recruitment and vetting process. Full details will be provided with your interview or assessment invitation.

Reimbursement is discretionary and will only be made in line with the Candidate Expenses Policy, as amended from time to time. Candidates must book their own travel, using the most economical option, and provide original hardcopy receipts for reimbursement.

Please note, you should only launch your application from within the UK. If you are based overseas, you should wait until you visit the UK to launch an application. Applying from outside the UK will impact on our ability to progress your application. You must be present in the UK to complete each stage of the recruitment process, and we are unable to maintain contact with you during any time you spend overseas. You should not discuss your application, other than with your partner or a close family member.

Right to close applications early

Please be aware that we reserve the right to close applications once a certain number have been received. Please submit your application as soon as possible to avoid missing out. If you have a disability (as defined under the Equality Act 2010) and need additional time to complete your application, please submit your initial application. Then, contact us via the email provided as soon as possible, using the subject line "Reasonable Adjustments Extension" and briefly outline the support you require.

Please note, it is this organisation's policy not to provide feedback at any stage of the recruitment process. This may be contrary to the message below.

Feedback will only be provided if you attend an interview or assessment.